On Sat, 09 Oct 2004 15:43:08 +0200, Martin wrote:

On Sat, 09 Oct 2004 14:03:36 +0100, Stephen Howard
wrote:

I thoroughly recommend a book called Mother Tongue, by Bill Bryson.
Should you ever read it I think you'll be appalled to find that you're
just as guilty as the next 'ignorant wordsmith' when it comes to
twisting definitions - and you'll also discover that many of your
linguistic tenets have extremely suspect origins ( such as the
venerable OED ).

Bill Bryson is a more reliable authority, than the compilers of the
OED? Not in my opinion.


So when you want to find a nice pub in, say, Devon you consult an
atlas... as opposed to the Good Beer Guide?

You've not really grasped the point.

Regards,



--
Stephen Howard - Woodwind repairs & period restorations
http://www.shwoodwind.co.uk
Emails to: showard{who is at}shwoodwind{dot}co{dot}uk